More seniors are using marijuana and driving

Many of today’s seniors were children of the 1960’s and ‘70s, with marijuana part of their lifestyle. As more states have legalized cannabis, its use has risen among this older generation. However, it has created a safety concern.

A new nationally representative study highlights a growing public safety concern: driving after cannabis consumption among adults aged 50 and older.

Researchers found that more than one in five adults in this age group reported using cannabis in the past year, and about one in five of those users said they had driven within two hours of consuming it. The findings underscore the need for prevention and education efforts that specifically address cannabis-impaired driving among middle-aged and older adults—a group often overlooked in drugged-driving research.

The study analyzed survey data from 3,379 U.S. adults age 50 and older. Of those respondents, 729 people (21.4%) reported cannabis use in the past year. Among these cannabis users, 20.2% acknowledged driving within two hours of using cannabis, a window during which impairment is most likely.

“Our results show that cannabis-impaired driving is not just a younger person’s issue,” the authors noted, pointing to clear risk patterns within the older population.

Driving high

The analysis identified several factors that distinguished older adults who reported driving after cannabis use from those who did not.

After accounting for multiple variables, men were significantly more likely than women to report driving within two hours of cannabis consumption. Daily cannabis users also stood out: compared with people who used cannabis once or twice in the past year, daily users were more than three times as likely to report driving after use.

Motives for cannabis use also mattered. Adults who reported using cannabis to cope with mental health concerns—such as anxiety, stress, or depression—had nearly twice the odds of driving after consumption. In earlier analyses, using cannabis to help with sleep was also associated with higher rates of driving after use.

“These findings suggest that both frequency of use and the reasons people use cannabis are important for understanding driving risk,” the researchers wrote.

Use increases with age

Cannabis use among older adults has climbed sharply over the past decade, coinciding with expanded legalization, increased availability of high-potency products, and declining perceptions of risk. National data show that past-year cannabis use has more than doubled among adults in their early 50s since 2013, with substantial increases also seen among those age 65 and older.

At the same time, evidence continues to show that cannabis can impair key driving-related skills, including attention, reaction time, and information processing. These effects may be especially concerning for older adults, who may already be experiencing age-related changes in cognitive functioning.

While some research suggests frequent users may develop tolerance to certain impairing effects, the study’s authors caution that tolerance does not eliminate risk—particularly when combined with aging-related vulnerabilities.

Most drug-impaired driving prevention programs are designed with younger drivers in mind. The new findings suggest that approach may miss a growing at-risk population.

The researchers argue that prevention strategies should be tailored to older adults, with particular attention to daily users and those using cannabis for mental health reasons.